Gone Forever?
by fuzzflight
Summary: When Naruto faces death by Sasuke's hand, Kyuubi transports their souls into that of a Shadow-clones but a few things happen Kyuubi didn't plan on. For starters, they don't remember anything! They leave Konoha thinking Naruto is dead...
1. Naruto's Dead?

**Gone Forever?**

**Disclaimer: **I don't him. -.- But neither do you, so **hah**!

**Summary: **What happens to shadow-clones when you die? They just disappear. That is, unless your Naruto. When Naruto faces death by Sasuke's hand, Kyuubi transports their souls into that of a Shadow-clones but a few things happen Kyuubi didn't plan on. For starters, they don't remember **anything**! They leave Konoha thinking Naruto is dead and Sasuke is to blame.

**Warnings: **Death, some cursing, some OCC, and my own characters. Sorry, can't be helped. There will also probably be strong friendship between Sasuke and Naruto but no yaoi because this story will probably be NaruOC.

**Author Notes: **I should not be starting a new story. I should not be starting a new story... oh well, to late! I just NEEDED to write this! And yes, most of this chapter was totally unnecessary to have, but I don't care. I wanted it all in there. I've seen some stoires sort of like this, so hopefully this one will be different! (As it is, I barely know where I'm going to go with this story) I rated this T because I'm afraid to rate it any lower just in case. Dx Anyway... please enjoy! (And I'll update my other story soon, I promise)

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><p><strong>Chapter 1<strong>

Naruto stood at an edge of a clearing, his chest heaving as he tried to pull in the air to fill his lungs. His hair was matted with blood. His obnoxiously orange clothes were now torn and blood-stained. He had various shades of bruises lining his body where ever his tan skin was not already open and bleeding. He could barely open his left eye and his body was undergoing this numb sensation that made his fingers tingle and barely function to hold his kunai knife.

The other end of the clearing held his rival… his best-friend. The person he had admired, and hated for most of his life. The person he had wasted all of his teenage life desperately searching for… the person who Naruto would go back and redo everything with, the good times and the bad ones. For all those times, were better than what Naruto was going to do now.

It was Sasuke that stood, facing Naruto on the other side. He looked worse than Naruto did. Blood trailed down from his right eye, dripping off of his chin. He looked like he had literally gone to hell and back about three times.

And Naruto…. Well, Naruto was going to kill him.

He didn't want to, but Naruto knew that it was his only choice. If he didn't kill Sasuke now, he might never get another chance and the Uchiha might really hurt Konoha one day. That was something Naruto couldn't live with.

Naruto made a sign with his hands, preparing to make a whole bunch of clones for his last attack. Clones seemed like such a simple jutsu to use to kill Sasuke, but it just seemed right to use it for his last move. His mind flashed thoughts of how it all came down to this. He went over his day and how seeing Sasuke was the last thing he had expected.

**Flashback-**

_Naruto walked with his hands resting behind his head, his fingers laced in his blonde hair. His orange jacket had been unzipped, letting the world see the black shirt that lay beneath. _

_He was on his way home from a very long mission. It was only a C mission that involved taking a scroll to some Lord on the _far_ side of the Earth Country. Tsunade had sent him alone because the village was very busy at the moment. But still, even if the mission was easy, it had already taken a week and Naruto had been _running _the whole way there. So now that the mission was over, Naruto had no intentions of rushing back home. He planned to walk at a comfortable pace for at least a couple of days—he couldn't take _too _long. _

_Naruto had decided to go around all the small villages he passed and not through. He wanted to enjoy this beautiful day _alone _and not surrounded by some strangers in a village. That, and it was always best to keep away from other people when in someone else's country; someone might think he was an enemy._

_One small village that he passed didn't have a road leading around it so Naruto veered off into the woods. He walked through the trees for about an hour when he came upon a large clearing. He stepped out into it, smiling to himself. _

_Naruto couldn't help it, he felt a little bit childish. He jogged to the middle of the clearing, the knee-length grass brushing against his legs. He then spun around once. The whole clearing was surrounded by trees and Naruto couldn't see anything through the trees except more trees. He had no idea how far away he had walked from the village. But who cared?_

_Naruto laid down into the sea of grass. The grass poked at his back but he shifted himself until he felt comfortable. He then spread out his arms and legs like a star and stared at the sky above him. He smiled contently as he felt his black shirt soak up all the sun._

_Naruto didn't know how long he lay there and he eventually fell into a light slumber. He woke up to the feeling of a familiar charka nearby._

_Naruto snapped open his deep blue eyes as soon as he felt the presence of another charka. He sat up groggily, making sure the tall grass was still above his head, and looked around. No one else was in the clearing but the charka was close. Naruto's brows buried as he tried to think of whom this charka belonged to. It seemed so familiar! But the name just wouldn't come into his mind. _

_Then, Naruto heard the rustling of grass. His head snapped in that direction and his eyes widened at who he saw._

_Sasuke._

_The black-haired boy was alone, standing at the edge of the clearing. Sasuke looked around the clearing lazily, obviously not having spotted Naruto yet. _

_Naruto gulped, unsure of what to do. Should he show himself to Sasuke? Should he do some sort of a sneak-attack? Should he wait here quietly until Sasuke left and then follow the boy?_

_Naruto chose the last option. He didn't want to fight Sasuke, not yet anyways, but following could provide useful information. Besides, if Sasuke hadn't already detected Naruto, Naruto doubted he would notice if a ninja was following him._

_Naruto lay back down as quietly as possible. He barely dared to breathe as he listened to the grass rustling and the soft thud of each of Sasuke's footsteps. _

_Fortunately, Sasuke was not walking towards Naruto. No, Sasuke was staying towards the edge of the clearing, walking around it. Naruto had no idea as to why, but hey, maybe the guy just didn't want to be in open grounds. _

_It was a bird that gave him away. A stupid fucking raven. The bird had been hopping around in the clearing looking for worms or whatever when it had spotted Naruto. It came over to him and started to squawk loudly. It hopped towards him and then away, flapping its wings randomly. _

_Naruto shut his eyes tightly and clenched his teeth. He prayed that Sasuke thought the bird was just crazy and not actually reacting to something. One second passed and nothing happened. Two. Three…_

_Five seconds passed with the bird still squawking and then:_

"_Naruto?"_

"_Damn it," Naruto cursed quietly when he heard Sasuke speak. He was tempted to just continue laying there and pretend he wasn't there but he wasn't a fool. He knew his cover had been blown._

_Naruto sat up straight, letting his head poke over the top of the grass. He looked in Sasuke's direction and saw the black-haired boy already looking at him. Blue eyes locked onto Black ones. _

_The bird flew away but Naruto and Sasuke barely noticed. They just kept staring at each other. Naruto slowly stood, never letting his eyes leave Sasuke. He stood with his body facing towards the other boy and with his arms hanging limply at his sides. He looked relaxed, but he was fully ready to attack or defend himself if need be. _

_Naruto stared deeply into Sasuke's dark eyes and it was if they were talking to each other. Naruto understood that they were going to fight, a fight to death, it was just a matter of who would make the first move. _

_Naruto gulped before reaching into the pouch hanging on the back of his waist. He grasped a kunai knife firmly in his hand. He knew that he was going to have to kill Sasuke or die himself—that was what a fight to death meant. He took his hand out of his pouch and returned it to his side, the kunai knife's tip pointing towards Sasuke._

_He stood there for a couple of seconds, breathing harshly. His hand with the kunai knife visibly shook. Finally, Naruto leapt into action, running towards Sasuke. _

**-End Flashback**

The clearing was filled Naruto's clones. The real Naruto could barely see Sasuke at the other edge through the sea of orange. Sasuke stood there seemingly calm, the only signs that he was in a fight at all were his wounds and the fact that he had his sword clutched in his hand tightly.

This was it. This would be the day Naruto proved himself to be stronger than Sasuke. The day Naruto killed him.

Naruto remembered that as a kid, he couldn't wait for this day to come. But now… Now that it was finally upon him, he would give anything for it to disappear forever. He could feel tears biting at the back of his eyes but he refused to cry.

His shadow-clones began making rasengans, and Naruto held out his hand for a clone to help him make his own. The charka began to swirl in his hand but Naruto didn't even spare it a glance.

His shadow-clones began to throw themselves at Sasuke, and Sasuke somehow defended himself against all of them. Naruto stood there watching for a little while, a tear finally slipping past his eye. He began to run, charging at Sasuke.

Naruto was getting closer to Sasuke, the spinning rasengan resting in his hand behind him as he ran. Blood was blurring his vision, but he could make out Sasuke lashing out, making each of his shadow-clone turn into a white cloud. There were still tons more of them though.

Closer.

Eveything seemed to slow down. His heart-beat rang in his ears and he could barely hear the cries of his shadow-clones.

Closer.

Naruto brought his jutsu in front of him, preparing to thrust it through Sasuke's body.

Closer.

Naruto watched as Sasuke turned toward him, his red eyes opened wide in surprise. There was no way he could defend himself against this.

Closer.

Naruto was almost there. He was almost close enough to make contact with the Uchiha's skin.

Closer.

Naruto was about to make the final blow when he felt something tear through his chest and heart. His blue eye's widened and his mouth fell ajar. He couldn't even scream as the pain spread throughout his body, swallowing him. His legs had stopped moving, paralyzed. The Rasegan in his hand immediately vanished into the air, leaving Sasuke still standing in front of him. His shadow-clones stopped attacking and one-by-one, they poofed into clouds.

Naruto tried to grasp his chest but found his arms unable to move. He worked his mouth, trying desperately to breathe but he was no longer able to draw in air.

Naruto's eye-sight began to blur, coming in and out of focus. Out of the corner of his eye, he could barely see one of his own shadow-clones standing there with a chidori in his hand.

How…?

The shadow-clone flickered between Sasuke and Naruto before settling on Sasuke's form. Everything suddenly came clear to Naruto. Sasuke had disguised himself as one of Naruto's shadow-clones so that he wouldn't see the attack coming.

Naruto felt darkness closing in on him. He could feel his knees starting to buckle. He began to fall. He was falling into the darkness. This was the end. The end of Uzumaki Naruto.

Just before Naruto finally blacked out, he felt something stir inside of him. He didn't really think, but he knew somewhere deep inside of his mind that it was Kyuubi. But… Kyuubi couldn't save him now. There was no way he could heal a wound such as this. Still, Kyuubi stirred and did something that Naruto couldn't really explain. It didn't really matter though, because the next second, everything went black.

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><p>Sasuke watched as Naruto fell to the ground. He watched as the body lay there unmoving. He wasn't sure of what to do. His mind had gone blank as he stood over Naruto's dead body.<p>

He had finally killed Naruto.

He had killed him. _Murdered_ him. Naruto was dead… No more to walk the Earth. No more…

Sasuke was expecting a different feeling than this. He didn't know what exactly he _was _feeling; he just knew that he had expected something else.

This weird feeling, spreading throughout his stomach, what was it? He felt like puking, yet knew that he would not. He felt like throwing a tantrum, loosing his cool like an Uchiha never would. Actually no, he did not feel these things. He _wanted_ to do these things but he did not truly feel them. What he actually felt was . . . Nothing.

Yes, he felt nothing. It was a horrible feeling, really. Much worse than the pain or guilt he felt for most of his life. This _nothingness, _made him feel like he was not really attached to Earth. That he was a black hole with no emotions.

He had no idea of what to do now. Naruto was gone. Gone forever.

He continued to just stare at the dead body at his feet. He wanted to cry, yet felt no tears coming to his eyes. He knew he should feel _something _for the blond boy beneath him, but no feelings came for him. Not even happiness for finally being able to kill Naruto.

Sasuke finally understood why he had become an avenger. It was to fill the nothingness he had felt threatening him when he was younger. He had filled the horrible void within himself by making himself hate Itachi—filled it by wanting revenge.

Even after Itachi died, and Sasuke was once again chased after by the nothingness feeling, he had been able to shift his hatred towards Konoha, or more specifically, Naruto.

But now, Naruto lay dead at his feet. There was no one else to turn to. No one else that could fill this empty pit in his stomach He had no else one to hate… except himself. And yet, Sasuke did not feel hatred for himself because that would be feeling _something._ He was not even granted that.

His breathing became erratic. Why wasn't there anger bubbling inside of him? Why wasn't there anything! He didn't even want to kill himself, although he didn't want to live either.

Sasuke breathed in slowly, trying to calm his mind. He had to find something to do, something that could possibly fill the emptiness inside of him, or else he would go crazy. So, Sasuke bent over and picked up Naruto's limp body in his arms, bridal-style. He figured he may as well go back to Konoha and tell everyone their hero had died. He had nothing else to do anyway, so he told himself, but somewhere deep inside of him, Sasuke felt almost happiness biting at the edge of his nothingness for finally being able to go back home.

He left the clearing without a backwards glance. If he had taken the time to look the clearing over once more, or perhaps even clean up the remains of the battle, he would've noticed that one of Naruto's shadow-clones still lay there. And next to it, rested a small fox.

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><p>Amane<strong> (1)<strong> raked her green eyes across the clearing, taking in everything she saw. Well this certainly was new. She hadn't been expecting to find this when she had left her small village 30 minutes ago.

A small smile pulled at her lips when she realized her earlier plans had been ruined. She had been planning to come here, to this clearing, to pick daisies that had been sprouting up in millions. See, she hadn't wanted to go because she _hated_ picking flowers; it was just so… _girlie. _Her mother had forced her to go, thinking that if Amane did things that girls her age did, such as pick flowers, then Amane herself would be transformed into the perfect daughter! And then there would be no more nonsense talk about wanting to be a ninja.

Amane found herself mocking her mother in her head. Her lip had curled up into a snarl unconsciously. She didn't hate her mother, but she _did _hate the fact that her mother always tried to ruin her one dream of being a ninja.

Not that Amane could really blame her mother. Her mother actually worked in a hospital here in this small village, and although the village was small, it was a main stopping point in the country and thus, a lot of ninjas wandered in, hurt and needing medical attention. Amane's mother saw so many injured ninjas that every time Amane would mention her dream, her mother got protective and said 'it was too dangerous'.

Amane was never going to give up though! She had been training, behind her mother's back, and although she didn't know any jutsus, she thought she had good endurance and good fighting skills. That was one of the reasons why she agreed to come out here; She could train while her mother thought she was picking flowers!

But of course, she hadn't been expecting _this. _The whole clearing was literally ripped apart with no sign of there having ever been daisies there. Random holes littered the ground, while other places had new mounds. Even trees had toppled down onto the ground, although some trees were so burnt and ashy, you could barely tell they _were _trees. Blood stained the grass and fallen trees.

Had there been a fucking war here?

If so, where were all the bodies?

Amane hesitantly walked through the used-to-be-clearing, afraid that some survivor of this war would suddenly jump out at her. She stopped in the middle of the clearing and looked around.

She laughed softly at the silliness of her uneasiness. This wasn't some horror movie, why would someone try to scare _her? _If there was anyone left here, they wouldn't be wasting their time trying to frighten some teenage girl. Besides, no one was here except herself. She surely would have seen them if someone was indeed here, but she didn't, so no was here.

"Well, I must be getting back," Amane said to herself, filling the eerie silence that had begun to fill the clearing. "I'll tell Mother what I found here and she won't be mad that I came back so soon!" She talked with feigned enthusiasm, as if she really cared whether he mother was mad or not with her.

It was then that she heard the low groan.

Amane turned around suddenly, eyes wide and wild. Her foot caught on something and she lost her balance, falling on her butt.

What was that?

Amane looked around frantically, her breathing coming in gasps.

The groan came again, filled with pain.

Amane's breathing slowed considerably as she realized it was just a person moaning because of wounds and _not _some weird monster laying in wait.

It looked like she had spoken too soon earlier about there being no one left here.

The groan once again echoed throughout the clearing, low and weak.

Amane stood slowly. She threw her eyes over the whole clearing but failed to spot anyone. She began to jog around, looking from one direction to the next, trying to spot any life form.

She finally stumbled upon a boy. Her breathe caught in her throat as she studied him. He was wearing tattered orange clothes although you could barely call them clothes seeing how they hung around his body like rags. His eyes were closed as he slept, but his whole face was contorted with obvious pain. His mouth barely hung upon as he let out small groans while at the same time, trying to breathe.

She was consumed with worry for the boy. She couldn't see any major wounds on him, but the way he was shifting around, like you'd imagine one suffering from a nightmare would, and groaning told her something was wrong with him. She felt herself go into 'mother-mode', a mode she was unaware that she had. She wanted to protect the boy, as if she were his elder. (As it was, Amane predicted the boy to be around 16, the same age as herself)

She stepped towards the blonde boy, arms outstretched, but a soft growl stopped her. She stepped back, alarmed. The growl then stopped. That sound had definitely not come from the boy.

Then where had it come from?

She suddenly gulped when she saw the small fox lying next to the boy's legs. Its head was lifted towards her, lazily, and Amane found herself staring into its big, red eyes. Those eyes… they seemed to hold so much intelligence, something a fox's eyes should not contain.

She waved her arms at the fox, trying to shoo it away, but the fox did not budge. In fact, it seemed to be looking at her in amusement now!

Amane took a deep breathe before tentatively placing one foot in front of the other. The fox once again growled, losing its laziness and stretching its head to her. The fox seemed to be protecting the boy… or did it just see the boy as food that he was saving for himself?

Either way, Amane put her hands out in front of her as if to show the fox that she had no weapons and took another step.

The fox continued to growl but made no other move to stop her as she continuously walked very slowly to the boy. When she was close enough to touch the boy, she crouched down. The fox finally got to its feet and started to advance upon her, it's growling growing more vicious.

"I just want to help," she said quietly, her voice going up an octave in fear. She was staring hard at the boy's face, too scared to look the fox in the eyes. "I can help him," she said more firmly. "My mother works at a hospital where they can treat him."

She stole a glance at the fox and sighed in relief. The fox seemed to somehow understand her words as it stopped moving towards her. Its growling continued, but it was softer, and more of just a threat that seemed to say, 'If you hurt him. I'll kill you.'

Amane gulped but reached out a hand towards the boy anyway. She placed her hand on his cheek, softly caressing the skin there. She rubbed the scars on his cheek with her thumb. She wondered briefly where those scar had come from. Or were they even scars?

Amane sat back and looked the boy over, studying him. She needed to get him back to the village soon, lest he die, but how? She supposed she could try to carry him herself, but he looked heavy and the village was a good hour away if she had to carry this boy with her.

Well, there was nothing else to do. Amane stood. She then bent down and tried to pick the boy up bridal-style but found her attempt unsuccessful. The fox's growling became louder again but Amane ignored it. She contemplated how to carry him before just hooking her arms around the boy's chest, under his armpits. She was going to have to drag him. He may be hurt, but this was the best she could manage.

She began to walk backwards as carefully as she could manage. She couldn't see where she was going very well, even with looking over her shoulder and she found herself stumbling a few times but she always somehow managed to regain her balance without falling.

She realized after a little while, that the fox was following her, its red eyes big as it wondered where she was taking the boy. She gave the fox a look of annoyance, although she really didn't mind that it was following her. The boy looked like he was a ninja and so, maybe the fox was his ninja-fox. She knew there were ninja-dogs, so why not foxes?

The fox followed her all the way to the village and even to the hospital. Once there at the hospital, Amane had someone find her mother who immediately found the boy a room. Amane also convinced her mom, with a lot of arguing, to let the fox go in as well.

They dressed the boy in hospital gowns, Amane looked away for most of it, not wanting to see his 'man-parts'. Then they laid the boy down on the hospital bed, pulling the thin blanket up to his chin. They set his clothes down on the table next to the bed, along with the pouch they had found attached to his clothes, although they had removed the weapons from said pouch.

Amane's mother told her someone would come in shortly to attend to the boy and see what was wrong with him. Then all they would have to do was wait for him to wake.

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><p><strong>5 days later…<strong>

Sasuke could see Konoha's big gate looming in front of him now. He was only about a quarter mile away. He started to drag his feet; Naruto's dead body in his arms felt like a million pounds.

An ominous feeling had settled in his stomach. Coming back to Konoha would bring nothing but trouble for him, especially after they saw that he had killed Naruto. He would be lucky if he managed to get away with his head. But he knew he would have to face their wrath. If he didn't… well, his life would be worse than losing his head would be.

He took a deep breathe and stood up straight as he reached the gate. He kept his gaze right in front of him, not looking down, sideways or up. Straight ahead. His face was as impassive as ever.

The guards at the gate stepped in front of Sasuke, looking him over. Their faces were blank, but realization as to who Sasuke was and who he was carrying soon dawned in their eyes.

What were their names? Sasuke recognized them, but could not remember their names. Oh well, it didn't matter. Sasuke doubted he was going to get to know them anytime soon anyway. He would most likely be locked away.

"Is he dead?" the guard with a bandage across his face spoke.

Sasuke barely nodded.

Both guards gulped, sadness overcoming their facial expression.

"Izumo, you should go tell Tsunade-sama," the guard who had spoke before said.

The other guard nodded before creating a sign with one hand and disappearing.

Sasuke was left alone with the one guard. He kept still. He could tell the other man was wary of him, or afraid that Sasuke would turn and run or something. Sasuke didn't blame him; he was a missing-nin, so if he ran away, this guard would be at blame for letting him get away. But Sasuke didn't plan on fleeing; he was going to stick this through, no matter what.

They only had to wait about a minute before Tsunade and—Izumo was his name?—appeared before them. Tsunade took one look at Sasuke before her eyes started watering. Her mouth was twitching. She probably wanted to yell at Sasuke.

She stole Naruto from his arms, and Sasuke let her. He watched as Tsunade hugged Naruto's dead body, one hand looped around his waist, the other tangling itself into his matted blonde hair and pressing his face into her shoulder. He watched as tears slipped past her eyes and she rocked back and forth with Naruto, his limp legs dragging across the ground.

Sasuke could tell that she believed Naruto would wake up any moment and give her that big smile of his and say everything was alright. But that wouldn't happen, because Naruto really was dead.

Sasuke was finally feeling guilt for what had happened. He wasn't so sure that this shame was better then the nothingness he felt before though. Now, he really felt like crying. But he didn't allow himself to, call it pride if you want to, but he kept watching with his blank face.

He felt himself begin to believe with Tsunade. Why wasn't he waking up! He couldn't really be dead; there was just no way… Nothing could ever kill Uzumaki Naruto. He was going to be hokage one day!

Tsunade finally rounded on Sasuke, yelling at him. Sasuke tuned her out though, staring at Naruto who she carried with one arm.

The rest happened in a blur. Tsunade had handed Naruto over to Izumo reluctantly, and had taken Sasuke over to the prison herself. It seemed that she did not trust anyone else to do it. Sasuke let himself be led there.

The ANBU that guarded the prison opened the doors for them and led them through corridor, through corridor, down stairs upon stairs until they reached a vacant cell in the side of pure rock. The ANBU opened the door and Sasuke was pushed inside. The guard then closed the door, leaving Sasuke to look at them through metal bars.

"This is charka-enforced, about ten-million times, so don't even try on getting out," the ANBU said. He then left, leaving Tsunade alone with him.

Tsunade stared blankly at him for a few seconds before speaking softly, "I'm sorry it has to be this way, Sasuke. But you've just become too dangerous. You'll be taken in front of the elders of the village in about a week for a final punishment."

She paused, waiting for an answer. Sasuke didn't give her any.

She nodded, as if Sasuke had answered. "I know you'd probably like to go to Naruto's f-funeral," she said, her voice cracking when she said 'Naruto's funeral'. "But I just can't grant that. I'm sorry."

Tsunade then left, tears shining in her eyes.

Sasuke was all alone. Just like he had been when he was younger. The cell he was in was filled with darkness. The hallway just outside the cell was barely lit with flickering lights.

Sasuke dropped to the cold, stone ground, and for the first time in eight years, he let tears fall from his eyes.

**End of Chapter 1**

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><p><strong>(1)- <strong>Amane, pronounced Ah-Mah-Neh. I'm pretty sure it means 'Sound of heavens' if the place I got the name from is accurate.

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><p><strong>Next Chapter: <strong>Naruto wakes up to find... wait, where the hell is he? And more importantly... **who **the fuck is he?

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><p><strong>Author Notes: <strong>Hope you enjoyed, please review. I'll try to get the next chapter up soon...**  
><strong>


	2. Waking Up

**Gone Forever?  
><strong>

**Disclaimer: **I don't own him...

**Author Notes: **I'm **SOOOOOOOOOOOO** **SORRY** that I haven't updated for like forever.(So sorry) I hope that you guys still want to know where this story is going(I still want to know least) I would give some lame excuse but I really don't have one. I just haven't written. I'm a huge procrastinator, even for things I want to do. =( Again, sorry.

But! From now on I'm going to try and update (hopefully) every other week. I'm probably not going to keep that promise, but I'll try. And reviews always help me want to write!

Also, I'm sorry if Sakura sounds OOC, but someone close to her DID just die... that changes people. And for Naruto, he doesn't remember anything so he has an excuse to be OOC. Please enjoy.

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><p><strong>Chapter 2<strong>

News of Naruto spread like wildfire through the streets of Konoha. People everywhere were saying how they heard from a friend, who heard from someone that they had seen a very injured Naruto being carried by the Hokage-sama. But of course, he wasn't _dead, _just severely injured.

There was also talk of Uchiha Sasuke having returned, but no one really seemed to believe it. Or rather, they chose not to believe, their voices turning to ice at the mention of the traitor's name. There was a time when they all wanted Sasuke back- desperately so, but not anymore. Sasuke deserved to rot in hell according to the villagers.

There was one more rumor buzzing around the streets. It was actually more of a connection between the two. If Sasuke returned to the village conveniently at what seemed to be the same time that Naruto came back from his mission injured, was it Sasuke that hurt Naruto?

These were all fairly new rumors and although most commoners had already heard them, it wasn't unusual that a busy ninja to have not caught wind of them yet. A ninja such as Sakura, that is. The pink haired kunoichi was currently walking with a bag of groceries for her parents when she passed some women gossiping. She couldn't help but over hear what they said, and what she did hear, she couldn't help but be intrigued. She stopped walking in favor of eavesdropping.

"You guys don't really believe that he returned, right?" a woman, close to her thirties said to her companions. "I mean, after all those years of running away from the village, why would he just suddenly decide to return? Think about it."

_Who returned? Who are they talking about? _Sakura wondered.

"Well yeah, but..." another woman said, her voice nervous, wanting to argue and make them believe but her friend had a very good point. Sakura could hear her take a deep breath. "My other friend says she saw it with her own two eyes. She says it was definitely Uchiha Sasuke-"

_Sasuke! _Sakura exclaimed in her own mind, tuning out. She almost began to run away so she could see for herself but stayed as she heard:

"The hokage-sama was leading him herself to jail and he didn't once try to resist." It was the same woman talking as before.

"Then it couldn't have been Sasuke," the first woman argued. "He's much to prideful to be _led _to prison. And it still doesn't make any sense."

Sakura began to doubt the second woman. _She's right. Sasuke couldn't have come back. _Her heart must have fell ten feet with that realization because as much as she hated it, she was still in love with Sasuke.

The second woman was shaking her head. "No. he's to prideful to _fight_ once he's caught."

And just like that, Sakura perked up again. Hopeful.

"You guys don't get it!" the third woman finally jumped in, her voice filled with exasperation. "It can't _just _be a coincidence that Sasuke returned the same day that Naruto comes back from his mission hurt! I mean, I saw Naruto _myself _being carried by Tsunade-sama. He looked almost _dead-"_

That's when Sakaru's hearing failed her.

_Naruto-? _Her hands began to shake and her mouth dropped open. 'Naruto looked almost dead'

Her breaths started to come in little gasps. _No... No, that couldn't be true. Naruto... he couldn't be possibly be dead...but... but Sasuke... what if he... No, he couldn't have. Naruto wouldn't have let himself be killed... _

Why was it so hard to breathe? She just couldn't seem to find the air. Her whole body was shaking now.

A few people stopped and stared at her for a few seconds before continuing on their way. One person actually stopped and asked if she was okay, but when she didn't get a response, she left. All these people though, were like some distant dream. It didn't seem like they were really there.

She had to know if he was ok. Had to make sure he was still alive. She could help him. She could heal every wound he had.

So she fled, dropping her forgotten bag of groceries on the ground. She ran towards the hospital, thinking somewhere in her mind that that would be the place Naruto would be if he was hurt. She ran at top-speed, practically flying. Her heart raced as adrenaline pumped through her.

This was silly.

Somewhere deep down inside her, she knew this was stupid. But still... she had to know.. She couldn't ignore the bad feeling in her gut.

After what seemed like forever, she slammed through the hospital doors and was at the front desk panting.

The woman at the desk stared at her in shock. "Sakura... are you alright?" she asked in worry. She had had never seen the young girl so worked up before.

"Naruto..." she asked in between her heavy breathing. "Has... (pant)... Naruto...come.. through here... yet?" Sakura looked at the woman hopefully. She decided briefly that it was someone she recognized but couldn't place a name on her.

"No," the woman said. "Has he even returned from his mission yet?"

Sakura felt terror squeeze her insides. "I-" she began to answer but stopped when she didn't know what to say. She turned around slowly, feeling horrible. With small steps, she staggered to sit down in the waiting center, not listening as the woman called out her name and asked if she need anything. She plopped down into a seat and stared blankly ahead.

_He's not here because there's no reason to admit a dead person to the hospital._

She tried to convince herself otherwise, that the woman on the street were only gossiping, not talking actual facts. Naruto hadn't _really _returned from his mission yet. He wasn't _really _almost dead.

As much as she tried, though, she couldn't shake away her bad feeling about this. Somewhere deep inside her, she knew. She knew that he was dead.

She buried her head in her heads, her elbows on her knees as she blocked out the world. She wanted to cry but her body was still in too much shock to let tears loose.

_Its not true... He's not dead. Can't be. It's not true, not true... He's alive. He has to be._

She repeated similar things in her head from what seemed like hours. And that's when she realized it.

She loved Naruto.

She truly loved him, even more than she supposedly loved Sasuke. And the worst part was, she was never going to get the chance to tell him.

* * *

><p>"Sakura?" A distant voice asked. It seemed familiar. A hand was gently placed on her shoulder. Sakura jumped slightly , surprised.<p>

She slowly looked up, her eyes meeting Shizune's. Her eyes were filled with so much pity.

So it was true... this was answer enough for Sakura. Naruto was in fact dead.

"Tsunade-sama wishes to see you," Shizune spoke softly, though her words rang loudly in Sakura's ears.

"Tsunade...sama?" Sakura asked, her eyes blank as of she weren't comprehending. But she knew... she understood all too well, she just didn't want to.

Shizune nodded in answer.

Sakura stood, her knees wobbling underneath of her. She really didn't want to go, a picture of a dead Naruto was already haunting her. His whole body was all bloody and torn and his blue eyes were so lifeless. She didn't want to see that, she'd rather pretend he was still alive and on his mission. But she knew she had to go.

Shizune kept close to her side as they left the hospital and headed through the streets of Konoha towards the Hokage's building. Sakura could feel each of her worried glances burning her skin.

Somewhere deep inside her, there was a swirl of dark emotions waiting to pounce on her and consume her. But for now, she felt mostly numb. She was still in shock. And as she walked through the village, she didn't see or hear anyone or anything else. She relied completely on Shizune to lead her in the right direction.

It seemed to take forever, but it was still too soon for Sakura, before they reached the Hokage's building. As they began to climb the stairs to where the office was, Sakura started to dread the moment they would walk through those doors and into the office. She desperately wanted to turn and run. Naruto wasn't in that room... He was still on his mission and a few days from now, he would walk into the village and greet her with that huge smile of his.

Yes, that had to be it.

Sakura took a deep breathe, squared her shoulders and reigned in her childish fear. She told herself she was overreacting. That this could just be to assign a mission or something, a harmless meeting.

Of course, she didn't really believe that.

Soon, the doors to the office were in sight. The two usual guards were there along with Kakashi-sensei who was obviously waiting for them.

_This must be the first time he's on time, _Sakura laughed nervously in her head, trying to lighten her mood and failing.

Kakashi turned to look at them, his face filled with pain. He suspected too.

The guards' face's were grim as they opened the doors and let them through.

Naurto's body was the only thing that Sakura saw as she entered, laying on the hokage's desk, motionless. She didn't register the other people in the room (Tsunade and Kakashi), nor the click of the door shutting.

Her eyes took in everything. How is skin was so pale and stretched across his bones. His clothes hung about him in bloodied rags. She saw every dry droplet of blood on skin.

Tears began to silently creep out of her eyes to make their way down her cheeks to fall on the ground. The one thing her eyes kept running back to, though, the one thing that clearly said he was dead above everything else was the gaping hole in his chest, right where his heart should be. The flesh around it was black, as though burnt, and it hung tattered into the hole. Dried blood dotted the black flesh.

There was only one thing that could've made a whole like that. Chidori. And as far as Sakura knew, there were only two people who knew that jutsu. And if it wasn't Kakashi who had done it, then it must've been Sasuke who killed Naruto.

Suddenly, Sakura's defenses about herself dropped and all of her emotions came rushing forth. All the sadness and anger and every other feeling she had balled up deep inside ever since Sasuke left came hurling itself at her.

Her legs gave out under her and Sakura collapsed to the ground, sobbing in her hands. A minute later she had gotten up and was running to Naruto's side, her hands already glowing green. She pressed her hands to his chest desperately, wailing. She shook her head, eyes closing, sending tears to fly.

"Naruto," she choked out. The glowing around her hands faltered before intensifying. She pressed her hands harder against his chest.

He wasn't dead... He couldn't be.

No... No, no, no, no. "No!" She screamed. Why wasn't anything happening? She pressed her hands even harder. Why. Wasn't he. Waking. Up?

"Naruto..." she sobbed. She began to chant his name. "Naruto.. why Naruto?... why? Naruto... please." Her hands slowly let up on the pressure and stopped glowing and her screams turned to soft murmurs. Soon, even her wails stopped. She was quiet for a moment, staring at Naruto, before she began to sniffle and rub at her bleary eyes and running nose.

A hand was placed on her shoulder comfortingly. Sakura turned her head to look at Tsunade, stilling her movements.

"Sakura," Tsunade said, her voice filled with pain but still trying to comfort.

Sakura's bottom lip began to tremble as she tried her best not to cry again. She failed and she quickly buried her head into Tsunade's big chest and wrapped her hands around her sensei's waist.

Tsunade paused for a second before beginning to rub her student's back and pat her head comfortably as Sakura cried for another minute or so.

Sakura soon got control over herself and pulled away. She took a few breathes and again, she wiped at her puffy red eyes. She took a few calming breaths before looking around the room, pointedly ignoring Naruto's body. She took a long time just studying the walls, trying to keep her mind from thoughts of Naruto.

When her eyes reached Kakashi-sensei, still standing by the door, she wanted to cry again for she felt so selfish that she had not thought of the others in the room when she began her outburst. Kakashi was looking away and by what she could tell, trying to hold back tears of his own. She grimaced before tearing her eyes away.

She took a few more steps away from Tsunade as if to distance herself from the guilt she know felt. Her eyes were down-cast and she waited for the Hokage to speak.

Tsunade didn't mention Naruto right off the bat though, surprising Sakura and yet left her almost grateful for not mentioning yet. "Sasuke's in jail."

Sakura nodded somberly. Only part of her mind was truly listening.

Tsunade sighed sadly as she crossed behind her desk and stared out the window, absentmindedly watching the world outside. Her arms were crossed under her chest and she was half slumped over as she leaned back against her desk. Finally, she continued, "He came back carrying Naruto's dead body." She again paused, and looked back at Sakura and Kakashi. Tears were now evident in her eyes and one had already left a glistening trail on her cheek. Slowly, to make sure this information really sank in, she said, "Sasuke was the one who killed him."

Sakura's chin began to shake as she desperately tried to hold a new set of tears back. She had already expected as much but it was still hard to hear.

The only thing Sakura could hear from Kakashi was a short intake of breath. For a second, she thought badly towards him that he wasn't reacting more.

_Doesn't he care that his own student was killed!_

She then berated herself for the thought.

_Of course he cares! He's just trying to hold it in so I don't see him cry. _

But it was so easy to turn sadness into hate and it felt so good as well. She began to hate both Kakashi and Tsunade for all of this, thinking of things that if they had done differently then Naruto would still be alive. Try as she might, she couldn't completely shake the anger off herself. She knew it was mostly directed at herself and Sasuke but one could usually never actually blame themselves and Sasuke wasn't there at the moment too be mad at.

"The Elders will be holding a trail for Sasuke in five days time," Sakura heard Tsunade say, taking her away from her thoughts. "I have no doubt he will be sentenced to death."

Everything was quite for a little after that before Kakashi choked out, "And what of Naruto?"

Tsunade turned fully towards them, chewing her lip. A single tear slipped from her eyes but she was quick to wipe it away. "We'll be holding a funeral for him in about three days. I do not look forward to sharing this awful news with the village, I only told you two because I think you deserve the right to know when your comrade dies. And also... I was hoping you would help me plan the funeral. I-" she took a shaky breathe. "-I don't think I could do it by my- by myself."

Tsunade looked at Sakura directly, her eyes begging for help before they moved to silently ask Kakashi.

"I'd understand if you said no," Tsunade told them, though her tone said she hoped they wouldn't.

As much as Sakura wanted to, she couldn't refuse. Not just because it was the hokage who was asking but because she knew she would regret it if she didn't plan the last thing that could ever be planned for Uzumaki Naruto. And so, she gave a brisk nod for an answer.

"Thankyou," Tsunade said gratefully, though her voice hoarse. "T-that is all, you two may.. leave now."

Kakashi left without a word but Sakura hesitated. Her hands reached out for Tsunade, wanting to comfort before dropping back to hers sides. Then she too, turned and left.

Right before the door clicked shut, Sakura could hear the sound of sobbing begin.

She gritted her teeth and clenched her hands into fists as she walked away stiffly. She was going to get Sasuke for this. How dare he cause them all so much grief! He was gong to pay, and Sakura would make sure of it.

* * *

><p>He was surrounded by darkness. He felt like his whole body being poke with cold needles. To him, it was as if he floating in an icy river so cold it burned. He felt the water flowing quickly around him, but he did not move with the current. For a second, he imagined the water heading towards a mighty waterfall, the center of his pain.<p>

Yes, his sub-conscious decided. He was feeling numbness all over his body, the center being around his chest. It came from some pain he could feel in the distance, being the waterfall.

He continued to float, barely aware of anything except his numbness and how he was gently being pulled back and forth by the water but barely moving.

Eventually, something bumped into him, or rather his conscious. Confused, he began to search for that 'something.' Again, he felt it touch him. It was... another creature's conscious.

/How..?/ fleeted across his mind before returning to darkness.

With his mind's eye, he reached out and ran his fingers over it blindly. He did not touch it completely, he knew. Something was there, like a thin veil he could not break through, making it impossible to submerge himself completely into this other mind.

Still, he could feel life pulsing under his fingers. He gasped as a rush of thought, feelings and pictures passed through the veil from the other mind and into his.

The other creature was hurt but it was worried... for him, it seemed. He saw himself, or at least he assumed it was himself because he felt some sort of connection to the sleeping boy with blonde hair and a toned body.

WAKE UP!

With that, he jolted to consciousness. Still only seeing darkness, it took him awhile to figure out what muscles he had to strain in order to open his eyes. He began to blink, a white and black blob in front of him. Finally, his vision cleared. He was staring at a white ceiling.

He began to wonder where he was, and so he turned his head sideways to have a look around him. He saw a blue curtain hanging down from the ceiling, cutting off his vision from the rest of the room. He turned his head the other way, and had to squint because of the light. When he was used to it, he saw that the light came from a window. Unfortunately, leaves from a tree took up the majority of the window, so he couldn't see what else lay outside.

He craned his neck a little, his head pounding and giving himself black dots to see down the length of his body. He would've jumped if he had had the strength at what he saw. At his feet, he gazed into the red eyes of a fox. The fox was curled up in a ball, lifting his head and blinking.

He suddenly felt a connection to the animal and he slowly realized that this fox was the owner to that other mind he had felt earlier. He knew instinctively to trust this animal and so he dropped his head back to his pillow, relaxing. With focusing, he could sense the fox there and still feel it's conscious pressing against his own. He could feel the fox's pain, not as distinct as his own, but it was there.

He laid there peacefully for awhile, before realizing that he still didn't know where he was. He thought about it for awhile before concluding that with how his body ached and the type of bed he was laying on, that he must be in a hospital.

/What happened..?/ he thought. His brows furrowed and his head began to pound as he tried his best to remember what had happened. He couldn't remember even the slightest details though. He traveled back in his mind, but as soon as he reached waking up a few minutes ago, there was absolutely nothing. He had no memories. He didn't even know where he came from.. or anything!

His confusion traveled to the fox and the animal shifted. He began to feel the fox trying to comfort him through the link of their minds. He was still distantly bothered, but for now, he would let it be.

A few minutes later, he heard a door creak open. He turned his head sideways as the curtain was pulled back to reveal young girl, maybe 15 years of age. She was very pretty with brown hair that traveled a little past her shoulders and piercing green eyes. She was slightly tanned and it complemented her well. Their eyes met, and he could visibly see her face light up in pleasant surprise. The next second she was by his side, a huge smile splitting her face. She peered into his eyes as her hands left feather touches on his face and chest.

She was asking a series of questions, each one cutting into the next so he couldn't really understand what she was saying. It seemed though, that she was asking if he was ok. He opened his mouth, planning to answer, but she had already turned around to disappear.

He blinked, surprised. He looked down at the fox to see it sleeping. He sighed, waiting patiently for the girl to return as he listened to the even breathing of the fox.

He didn't have to wait much longer before the girl returned with an older woman. The older woman must have been the girls mother for they looked much alike. The mother rushed to his side and put a hand to his forehead, probably feeling for a fever or something. Her touch was cold. She withdrew a few seconds later and he looked curiously up at her.

"Are you ok?" she asked quietly.

It took him a little while to reply, trying to work his mouth."I-I think so." he cringed at the sound of his own voice, it sounded dry and raspy. He tried to push himself up, but struggled until the girl's mother helped him and left him to lean against the wall behind him.

"Do you feel any pain?" she inquired shortly after.

"My body feels weak, but nothing serious," he said, before coughing.

"Can you tell me what happened?" she asked him seriously.

Again, he tried to remember anything at all, but his attempt was futile as he came up blank once more. He shook his head. "I don't remember anything."

She nodded understandingly and in a soothing voice said, "That's ok. Can you at least give me your name?"

His name... his name... oh fuck. Could he not even remember that? He suddenly felt desperately lost and his eyes began to water with tears. He shook his head, tears flying. "No," he said, his voice cracking. "I-I can't remember anything." He looked into her eyes, seeking for refuge. There was a mother's comfort present in her light green eyes and it did strengthen him a little.

The fox had lifted its head once again and had started to whine. It probably felt his discomfort.

"It's ok, it's ok," she whispered softly. She then turned away to fetch something out of a cabinet on the far wall. He looked at the other girl, her eyes were filled with hope as she watched him, a few tears gathering at the corner of her eyes

When the mother returned, she had a tan pouch in her hands. She held it before him, and he looked at it curiously.

"We found this by you, does it spark any recognition?" she asked.

He looked it over, straining to try and remember it. He felt like he was letting them down when he once more shook his head.

She flipped it open and bent a bit of fabric down so he could see a bit of writing that was on the inside. The word 'Naruto' was written there. Was that supposed to be his name? He asked so.

The woman nodded. "We believe so, but we're not sure."

Even in the depressing situation he was in, he couldn't help but laugh. "Naruto?" he chuckled. "But doesn't that mean like fish cake or something, a food you find in ramen?"

The woman smiled at him, pleased that that he could still laugh. "Yes it does, but if its alright with you, I think we will go ahead and call you that."

He thought about it for awhile. The name Naruto sounded so foreign to him, he felt no attachment to it but yet he knew that he would feel the same for any other name they picked. Naruto was probably the closest they would ever get. "I don't know what kind of parent would name their kid Naruto, but alright, I guess that can be my name," he said, adding, "for now," as an afterthought.

"Well, Naruto," the woman said. "you've been asleep for six days."

"S-six days?" he gasped. "What happened to me?"

"We're not sure, but my daughter, Amane, found you passed out in a clearing with the fox by your side. You didn't have any major wounds but by the looks of the clearing, it seemed you had been in a battle of some sort. The clearing was torn to pieces."

Naruto nodded, trying to wrap his head around the idea. "Am I ninja, then?"

"That's what we thought," the woman said. She opened the pouch further and gestured to what was inside. Kunai knives and scrolls and other various weapons lay inside. "Like I said before, we found this by you, and it's probably yours."

"I don't even know if I can fight," Naruto said exasperated.

The woman smiled. "We'll have to find out later, but for now, you need your rest. Amane will bring in some food in a bit."

She turned to leave but Naruto called out. "You forgot to tell me your name," he said.

The woman chuckled. "I'm sorry, I'm Reina. Murakami Reina, Amane's mother. Its nice to meet you Naruto." With that she left, bringing her daughter with her.

Naruto sighed and closed his eyes. This was all so weird. His name was so... odd. and he couldn't remember anything about being a ninja. Why? He tried to relax, not wanting to fret about it. But it really bothered him that he couldn't remember anything at all.

True to her word, the door opened again a little later. Naruto's mouth began to water as he smelt delicious food. Amane appeared carrying a tray with a steaming bowl of noodles and a glass of water on it. Naruto's eyes lightened up and his stomach growled as she set the try down gently on his lap.

Naruto weakly reached for the chopsticks on the tray and picked up some noodles. They looked so good. He brought them towards his mouth but his hand faltered and lost hold of the chopsticks. They fell onto his chest, leaving a stain on his light blue hospital gown. He stared dumbfounded at it.

Amane chuckled. "Do you need help?" she asked teasingly. She pulled up a chair from the corner of the room and without waiting for his answer began to feed him.

Naruto would have resisted if the food didn't taste so darn good. He chewed slowly but wished she would just shovel the food down his throat.

Halfway through his meal, he reached for the glass of water and Amane helped him bring it to his lips. The cold water ran down his throat refreshingly. He downed all of it.

"So, you're a ninja," Amane said, striking up conversation.

Naruto shrugged. "I guess so. But for all I know, I was the worst ninja alive." He chuckled.

Amane joined him in his soft laughter. "I've always wanted to be a ninja," she told him. "But my mother thinks it's too dangerous. And maybe she's right. I know being a ninja carries its risks, your a great example for that, but still..."

Naruto nodded. "I can't say I know the feeling of wanting something but not being able to get it."

Amane smiled softly. "Yeah, I know. I don't know why I'm confiding in a total stranger but I feel like I can trust you for some reason." She laughed.

The fox was suddenly standing by his tray of food. He looked Naruto in the eyes before bending his head and eating what was left in the bowl. Naruto let him.

He reached out a hand and petted the furry creature. "Why is it that you guys let a fox inside a hospital?" he asked.

"He seemed very... protective of you when I found you, and he followed me all the way here," Amane said truthfully. "I figured he must be a trained ninja fox or something so I convinced my mom to let him in. Does he not belong to you?"

"I think he does," Naruto answered. "I can't distinctively remember him, but I feel some sort of connection with him which must mean something."

Amane nodded. "I guess he needs a name though."

"Hmmm," Naruto thought out loud. "We could just name him Kitsune."

"That's a really simple name, but I guess it works," Amane agreed.

"Yeah, I guess it does," he smiled. "So, uh, do you mind telling me where exactly I am?"

""This is Koishi, It's a very small town in the Earth Country." She paused before asking, "Do you know about the countries...?"

"Uh..." Naruto had to think about it before saying. "Yeah, I think I do. There are five main countries, right? Land of Earth, Fire, Wind, Water and uh... Lightning?"

Amane nodded. "Correct."

"I wonder what country I come from," Naruto said.

"Probably Earth," Amane answered. "But I suppose we would have to travel to Iwagakure. That's the main village where ninjas are trained. Are Tsuchikage also live there."

Naruto nodded thoughtfully. For some reason, he doubted that he was from this country, but he had no way to know for sure. He wished he had his memories.

Amane picked the tray up for his lap and stood. "My mother says that once you've rested, you may come and stay at our house to hopefully get your memory back. Our hospital is too busy to keep anyone here unless its necessary. So, rest up."

Naruto watched her leave before laying down again and trying to fall asleep. His thoughts were haunting him though and keeping him from sleep. He wondered what he had done before in his life. Was he a bad person?

What if he found out he was? What would he do then?

* * *

><p><strong>Author Notes: <strong>Please review, it will help me get the next chapter up sooner. (:


	3. Escaping Prison

**Gone Forever?**  
><strong>Disclaimer<strong>: I don't own him.  
><strong>Author Notes:<strong> Well, it was a bit longer than two weeks, but at least it hasn't been too long. Anyway, thankyou to **The Lament Beast** for the awesome review. I now have an idea of where this story is going, and I'm pretty excited to write it. :D

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 3<strong>  
>It had been two days since Naruto had woken up in the hospital in Koishi in the Earth Country and even though he wasn't completely recovered, he was being moved to Amane's house. He was only a little tired and his memory was still gone but he couldn't be taking up space at the hospital. He could do his resting at Amane's house. And if he did need anything, Amane's mother, Reina, <em>was<em> a doctor.

Amane was currently leading him through their small town, her hand wrapped warmly around his as she pulled him along. Naruto felt a little dizzy as he walked and his legs, several times, almost collapsed beneath him. That's what happened when you hadn't used your legs for eight days. Amane didn't even realize that he was having trouble but Naruto was sure if he said something, she would stop without hesitation and force him to sit down and then baby him. He didn't exactly want that.

He was intrigued in how she could be so welcoming to a total stranger. She had been so nice to him, coming in to talk about him in the hospital when he was sure she had better things to do. She hadn't pestered him about trying to get his memory back, she just made small talk. And it had made Naruto feel safe around her.

But for all she knew, and for all he knew, he could have evil intentions. What if he was some sort of rapist or kidnapper? How did she feel safe with him? A small ball of guilt and worry began to twist in his stomach and Naruto laid a gentle hand over it.

He tried to ignore it and focus on Amane in front of him. She was chatting happily about the village, pointing things out to him. Every once in awhile, she would look back with a huge smile plastered on her face. That smile warmed his insides but it wasn't enough to rid himself of his guilt.

He swore then, to himself and secretly to her as well, that if he ever got his memories back and found out he had been an evil man, that he would change. He would never let any harm come to Amane, especially harm done by himself. He would find a way to become a good person.

Heh, funny. Here he was with a total stranger and already vowing that he would protect her. He wasn't any better than Amane being nice to him. In fact, he might be a little worse but than again, Amane and her mother who had shown up for only little while were the only two people Naruto actually knew. Amane had mentioned her father and her little brother a few times, but he hadn't met them. Amane might as well not have been a stranger, because she was in fact, the only friend he had.

Well, besides the Kitsune. He glanced down to his right, the little fox was walking right next to him. It looked up right when Naruto looked down and their eyes locked. It was almost scary how much Naruto felt like he and the fox were connected. _How is that even possible?_ he wondered.

"Well, we're here," Amane suddenly announced, taking Naruto from his thoughts. She let go of his hand, letting her arm drop to her side as she turned around and smiled.

Naruto looked past her at the house. It was a traditional two level Japanese house, made out of a light brown colored wood while the roof held black shingles. A pathway of stone led up to to the house and on one side a large tree was planted, its leaves and branches giving shade to the house. On the other side, a small garden filled with many flowers of different colors was present. It was lovely.

Naruto felt a tear almost slip past his eyes but he managed to stop it. It was just, seeing a house like this reminded him that he had no home. No family. Amane was so lucky she could come home every day to a house. He was happy for her, but also a bit jealous. But damn, he didn't need to get emotional. He could practically hear the fox laughing at him.

"Come on, lets go inside," Amane said before walking up to the house and sliding the door open. She poked her head inside and then called out, "Dad, I'm home." She then looked back at Naruto, was still standing by the road. She beckoned at him to come.

Naruto felt like he was intruding as he took that first step onto their property. He looked around guiltily as if someone was there to watch and judge him. After that, he managed to walk like a normal person while the fox trotted on ahead of him. He watched as Amane bent down to scratch behind his ears and if he wasn't mistaken, he thought he heard the fox give a light purr as Naruto reached the door. He could feel how happy that had made the fox.

"Ready to meet my family?" Amane asked as she stood up tall. Naruto noted that he was taller as the top of her head only reached to his nose.

"You say that as if its bad," Naruto joked.

Amane laughed lightly. "Maybe it is. You've never met them." Amane took a step inside and Naruto followed taking a look around the room. A small, black table was in the center with a cushion on each side of it. A few plants were in the corners and by the walls but beside that, the room was kind of plain. A sliding door to another room was directly across from them, and the second Naruto laid eyes upon it, it was slid open quite forcefully.

A tall man with bulging muscles entered the room. He had short black hair and some hair on his upper lip that could just barely be called a mustache. He was wearing a white t-shirt and jeans. The man seemed very intimidating but Naruto somehow stood his ground.

"So, I heard we were bringing a runt into the house," the man mocked Naruto, then held out a hand. "My name's Murakami Kenjiro, but you can just call me by my first name, Kenjiro. What was your name again?"

Naruto reached out his hand towards Kenjiro, saying, "My name is Nar-" but before he could finish, a boy appeared beside Kenjiro, perhaps around the age of 9, and Kenjiro took his hand away and placed it on top of the boy's head and began to talk.

"This here is my son, Akio!" Kenjiro announced, his voice so loud it was beginning to make Naruto's ears ache. "Say hello Akio!"

Akio looked down as he said a feeble greeting. It was obvious the boy was shy, with his black bangs hanging over his face, but Naruto didn't mind. He smiled at him, even if Akio didn't see him.

"Come, let us sit!" Kenjiro told everyone, plopping down cross-legged on one of the mats at the table. "Amane would you make us some tea?"

Amane nodded before disappearing into the next room. Naruto inwardly grimaced, wishing she would have stayed. He didn't like the idea of being in the room alone with Kenjiro. He sat down like the man had instructed though. The Kitsune sitting next to him, resting his head on the table. No one seemed to mind.

"So, what was your name again? I must have missed it," Kenjiro asked.

"It's Naruto," Naruto answered, slightly annoyed for having to say it twice.

"oh Naruto!" Kenjiro said, nodding to himself. "Yes, now I remember Amane and Reina saying your name to me before." He leaned across the table, grinning. "So I heard you're a ninja. I wonder if you're any good. I used to be a ninja myself," he leaned back, hitting his chest with one hand. "We might just have to battle and find out who's better."

"Heh, heh," Naruto laughed nervously, scratching the back of his head. He didn't know what to say. "I think that's okay, I-"

"Oh come on, don't tell me your scared!" Kenjiro challenged.

"No, no, it's just that-"

"Good!" Kenjiro laughed. "And your ninja fox can't help you!"

Amane came in then holding a tray of tea and cups, rescuing Naruto. "Come on Dad, he's been in a coma for awhile and he's still recovering."

She plopped down on the last available cushion putting the tray gently on the table. She began to pour everyone a cup of tea, passing them out as she did so. She then looked at Naruto with an evil glint in her eye. "Of course, once Naruto is healed, he would be a chicken to decline your offer."

"Wha-!" Naruto said. He thought she was defending him, but he guessed not.

Amane laughed. "Come on, I want to see how powerful you are too. even if you don't remember anything, I'm sure you still have some skills. Besides," she began to lower her voice, "my dad's not that good himself. That's why he stopped being a ninja."

Kenjiro had his arms crossed and his eye brow twitched visibly. Suddenly, he yelled, "I heard that! I was a damn good ninja! I only retired because your mother forced me out of it."

"More like mom had to heal all your wounds in the hospital and you were advised to stop being a ninja because you were no good," Amane scoffed.

Naruto chuckled, shaking his head. Gosh, they were so childish.

Through all of this, Akio sat quietly sipping at his tea, watching. Naruto decided to try and strike up a conversation with him, while Amane and her dad continued on bickering.

"So, Akio, how older are you?" Naruto asked, leaning slightly towards the boy.

"I just turned 10," was the quiet answer.

"Oh, when was your birthday?"

"A week ago."

"Well, happy belated birthday, I guess," Naruto said. He tried doing the math in his head to see how close he had shown up here to the kid's birthday. Somewhere close to it, at least.

"Thankyou."

"So, Naruto! How about it?" Kenjiro suddenly addressed Naruto, ignoring Amane. "A battle between me and you tomorrow at noon?"

Naruto sighed. "Fine."

"Yeah! I knew you couldn't resist!" Kenjiro threw up his hands in victory.

"I don't know if he'll be completely healed tomorrow," Amane argued.

"Don't be a party pooper, Amane. Besides, true ninjas heal fast and don't let little wounds hold them back," Kenjiro told her.

"Yeah," Naruto said, grinning and stretching an arm across his chest. Now that he had accepted the challenge, he wasn't about to back down. "I'll be fine. I guess I'm a little bit curious how strong I am too."

"Then it's settled!" Kenjiro announced, standing up. "Rest up runt. I guarantee you'll need it. Amane, show Naruto to the room he'll be staying in."

The man began to leave and then decided to add, turning around to look Naruto very seriously in the eyes, "And don't try any funny business with my daughter because I swear, you'll live to regret it." Then he was gone.

Naruto and Amane both blushed and Amane shouted, "Dad!"

The girl then sighed. "Sorry about that, Naruto. You don't have to fight him tomorrow, if you don't want to."

"I'll be fine," Naruto assured her. He laughed. "Your dad is something else."

"Yeah, I know," Amane joined him in laughter. She grabbed the tray of tea, placed Naruto's and her's empty cup on it and reached for Kenjiro's. She then growled. "Dad, you didn't even drink an ounce of your tea!"

She stood up, a childish pout on her face. "Come on, Naruto. I'll show you to your room." She began walking away.

"It was nice meeting you, Akio," Naruto said as he followed Amane out of the room. He almost missed Akio's soft reply.

The next room was the kitchen, with stairs in the far left corner. To Naruto's right, there was another closed door.

Amane was putting the tray on the counter. She pointed to the door and said, "That's my parents room. Come on, your room is upstairs."

She led him up the stairs where they came to a hallway. There was two doors on the right, one door on the left, and another door at the end of hallway. She pointed to the first door on the right, "That's Akio's room." To the second door, she said, "That's the bathroom, use it whenever you like. Just, make sure to knock first."

"Here's my room," Amane said, patting the door on the left side of the hallway. She then opened the door at the end of the hallway and turned on the light. "This is the guest room, where you'll be sleeping."

Naruto stepped inside and looked around. It wasn't very big, he noted, but didn't really mind. A mattress lay against the far wall, already dressed in sheets and a small tree in a flower-plot stood in the right corner. There was also a small dresser on the left wall but other than that, the room was empty.

"You can go to bed now, if you like," Amane told him.

Naruto was about to refuse, but then a sudden wave exhaustion hit him, making his knees wobble. "Okay," he yawned, walking and almost stumbling over to his bed. He plopped down on it and crawled beneath his covers, not even asking for some sort of pajamas, he was so tired. He felt the fox jump onto the bed and curl up at his side.

"Goodnight, Naruto," Amane said, flicking off the light.

* * *

><p>Sasuke sat in the corner of his cell, his legs drawn up to his chest and his arms resting on his knees. It was dark, the only light coming from outside from candles lighting the hallway. The bars to his cell were illuminated across the floor and on Sasuke himself, flickering in and out of existence.<p>

Sasuke had barely moved since he had been forced into his prison. He had only gotten up to pee, which he had to do in the other corner for there was no toilet, and when food was brought to him. He smelt horrible, his body odor mixed in with pee hung around the room. He was almost used to the smell by now, but he supposed the guards were not.

The guards only came by when giving him food, sliding it in between the bars and then leaving. He wondered why they didn't by more often. He was a top criminal, even if they said this was inescapable and Sasuke himself, had no plans to try and escape, shouldn't they at least be checking? It was a wound to his pride that they were not.

Sasuke let out a sigh. Who really cared about pride when being locked away? Of course, part of the reason why he was in here was because of his pride not letting him escape after bringing Naruto's dead body back to Konoha. The larger part though, was because he just didn't know what to do with himself now that Naruto was dead. He still didn't believe that that knuckle-headed ninja was gone. It just didn't seem possible.

He still felt numb from that incident and he hadn't the strength to escape from Tsunade. His will seemed to have been gone.

Sasuke was beginning to regret killing Naruto. More than that, he was regretting ever leaving Konoha to join Orochimaru. He had done that to kill Itachi, but Itachi ended up being good so it had all been useless. If only he could go back and do something different, maybe then he wouldn't be in this situation.

His stomach was beginning to hurt, and not from hunger although he felt that to. He placed a hand on it, wondering what this horrible feeling was that was twisting his stomach. He had felt anger for most of his life and also depression which fed his anger, but this feeling was new. He had to think before it finally came to him. Guilt.

He had never once felt guilt before. Well, actually he had, when he thought it was his fault for Itachi killing off their clan. But back then, it had easily been turned into more anger. This time, he couldn't manipulate it, it just stayed and it felt a lot worse than anger. If only there was something he could do to get rid of that. But that involved making Naruto alive again, which just wasn't possible.

The only other way to get rid of it was to die. Which Sasuke knew was going to happen, it was inevitable. He was going to be held on trial soon, and the elders would choose for him to die. Maybe if he had not killed Naruto, he would have had a chance to survive, but not now. Not when their savior was dead and he was responsible. It was probably the worst crime he could commit besides assassinating the hokage. Even if the elders knew that Sasuke was truly sorry for his actions, they would not take pity. He was doomed to die, but he was okay with that.

His stomach gave a rumble all of the sudden. Sasuke had pretty much deprived himself of food, other than a few bites of each meal. A tray was sitting by the bars of his prison with something that looked inedible on top of it. It had been placed there a few hours ago and flies were already flying around it.

He got up slowly, his muscles sore from being in that cramped position for so long, and walked over to the tray. Picking it up, he headed immediately to his corner again. He took a bite of the tasteless food, it was the only type of food he had been getting. They sure didn't give you any luxuries in prisons.

After half the food was gone, Sasuke's stomach finally calmed down. Sasuke put the tray on the ground and slid it away from him, not wanting any more. Even if that food was actually good, the idea of eating just didn't appeal to him very much.

Sasuke banged his head against the stone wall behind him, not even wincing as pain shot through him. He clutched his hands into fists while he stared upwards. Why couldn't they just kill him now instead of making him endure this pain? He wasn't even sure how many days he had been in this hell. There was no way to tell the time of day, no outside light came in, just the flickering candles that stayed there 24/7. Time was running together in his head, he could no longer tell minutes and hours apart. And he had lost count of how many guards came by to give him food. Besides, he wasn't even sure he got three meals a day.

It could have been a week since he was shoved into this dark world or maybe only three days. Why couldn't they just hold his trial now? Why was he forced to wait? He knew he was going to die anyway.

Sasuke closed his eyes tightly, starting to shake. He was finally doing what he had done for the rest of his life, turning guilt into anger.

Suddenly, Sasuke sensed something else there. His anger was forgotten for the time being as he snapped open his eyes, and was on his feet in mere seconds. His instincts were making him stand his guard. His hand hovered by his waist, where he used to have his sword. He looked around him in every direction, something dreadful was there, and he couldn't tell where!

He felt like something was beginning to push at his chest and he clutched at it with one hand, his heart beating rapidly. Then a huge pressure was pressing against his whole body, from all angles, crushing him. His head was beginning to spin. What was this? He found he couldn't stand and he fell to his knees, a loud crack sounding that didn't register in his head.

He couldn't breathe any more. Was this someone's attempt to kill him? He grasped at his neck as if to pry hands off of him, but his attempt was futile. He took in large gulps of air, but nothing helped. He began to cough. He was seeing bright lights, and every color was running together. He was losing consciousness.

Then, out of nowhere, everything let up. Sasuke let his hands drop from his neck and he almost fell over but managed to hold himself up with one shaky arm. He was breathing hard, and blinking, trying to rid himself of blurred vision so he could see who his attacker was.

An evil laugh began to echo around the room. Sasuke looked around hurriedly, wanting to see his attacker. He didn't find anything, but the room began to glow a bright orange. It got to the point where his eyes couldn't take it, especially after being used to the dark for so long. He shut his eyes and covered them with his arm. The laugh continued and it's pitch got so horrible that Sasuke wanted to cover his ears.

Abruptly, the laughing ceased. Sasuke peeked his eyes open, but closed them shortly after when realizing he still wasn't used to the bright orange glow.

"Who are you?" He yelled.

He only got another chuckle. Sasuke began to shake, it was starting to fucking annoy him. Why was this person toying with him? He just wanted him to come on out so Sasuke could kill him.

Finally, whoever it was, began to speak. "Sasuke." The voice was deep and ragged, definitely male, and power seemed to resonant off of it. It was enough to make any grown man shake in his boots out of fear. But Sasuke was only shaking out of his anger.

"What!" Sasuke screamed when the man didn't say anything else.

"Sasuke. You fool," was his answer. Sasuke felt something lash at his right side, like a blade of wind, and he fell over. He looked that way, but saw nothing other than the glow. Where the hell was this guy? And how was he doing this?

Another cruel laugh rung in his ears. "Did you honestly think I would let Naruto die?" Sasuke could practically see the man smirking. "You are a fool for thinking that and getting in the ways of my plan."

Again, Sasuke felt something powerful push into him from his left side this time and he went flying to other side of the cell, crashing into the wall and falling to the floor.

"I should make you pay for that!"

Sasuke took a shaky breath, and attempted to stand. He managed to get onto one elbow before he was pushed from above from the same invisible force and was forced to stay on the ground.

Could this possibly be Uchiha Madara? No, the guy had already been dead dead for quite awhile, but no other answer was coming to Sasuke's mind. It could have been possible for this all to be apart of Madara's plan, including his own death.

The glowing intensified but Sasuke found that this time, he couldn't look away. The orange was only getting brighter on the cell bars, though, the rest of the place stayed at a dull glow. A wind picked up, whipping around Sasuke's hair and clothes. He tried to get a handle on the ground, hurting his knuckles from pressing so hard, because he felt like he was going to be blown away.

Orange was turning into white and white was soon all that Sasuke could see. His eyes were squinted and they watered from staring at it.

The bright light unexpectedly went away and the wind stopped. Sasuke let out a breath of relief. Then he looked up to the bars. A huge hole had appeared, big enough for him to fit through.

Sasuke still found that he couldn't get up though.

"You must find Naruto and bring him back, Sasuke," the voice boomed. "If you should fail-" the wind picked up slightly, letting Sasuke know the consequences were great. "-Naruto will die. All because of you. Hurry, Uchiha, before I change my mind about letting you redeem your miserable life."

Then it seemed that the presence of this being was completely gone, leaving Sasuke's ears ringing and his vision spotted with orange.

Sasuke got up from the ground, supporting himself with one hand on the wall, his muscles creaking as he did so. It took him a second before his legs were stable beneath him. Then he stumbled off to the hole in the bars. Stepping through, he looked around for any guards. There was none.

Had they not sensed what had just happened? Sasuke didn't let it bother him. It was better this way, anyway.

He quickly put on a henge to look like a guard. Then he took off running in the direction he remembered leading outside. It felt good to be running, his muscles finally having the chance to stretch.

He ran past other cells, all of them empty. Eventually, he reached stairs and without thinking about it, he bounded up them. He exited them and found himself in the main part of the prison, for lesser criminals. He stopped, looking around. It was lighter here, and much more open. He was standing on the bottom floor of three levels, the upper two levels being just walkways around the walls. All that the walls consisted of was one cell after another, with a few hallways leading to somewhere else.

He only saw two guards, one pacing around on the second floor and another standing at the main entrance. Where were they all? There was five times as many when Tsunade had brought him here.

He shook his head slightly before sprinting towards the exit. Even in his henge. He slowed down at the exit though and let the guard there get a good look at him so he wasn't mistaken as a prisoner escaping.

"My shift is over," Sasuke told the man.

The guy looked like he was about to argue but Sasuke ran off before giving him the chance. He heard the guard call after him, but he knew he wasn't being pursued.

Once he was out of the guard's vision, he changed his henge to look like that of a commoner. When he reached the main roads of the village, he was surprised to see them mostly empty. Usually, on a day like this, they would be bustling with activity. It seemed barren though, besides the one or two people Sasuke saw lurking about.

Oh well, this was better as well.

It wasn't long before Sasuke reached the outer wall of Konoha. Without hesitation, he jumped up, focused chakra on his feet and ran up the height of the wall. He came to a halt at the top though to look out over the village. He scanned it, able to see almost everything, wanting to know where everyone was. He found his answer in the graveyard. It seemed a huge pack of people was there.

Sasuke let out a breath. They must be having Naruto's funeral. Sasuke's hands turned to fists. That was unnecessary. If that voice was right, then Naruto was alive and out there somewhere. Sasuke would find him. He wouldn't come back to Konoha until Sasuke had Naruto, even if that meant breaking every bone in Naruto's body to get him to come back.

Sasuke leaped away from the way, falling into the forest beyond Konoha's wall. He began to jump from branch to branch as fast as he could. He was probably going to be pursued soon by anbu, but Sasuke wouldn't let that hinder him. If Sasuke should fail bringing Naruto back, than Sasuke would be dead.

**End of Chapter 3**

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><p><strong>Next Chapter: <strong>Naruto gets to see how good of a ninja he is even when he doesn't remember anything, and Sasuke begins his hunt for Naruto. Meanwhile, Sakura decides to give Sasuke a visit in his prison but finds him gone!

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><p><strong>Author Notes: <strong>I admit, I had fun writing that last scene. You probably all know who that voice belonged to... Anyway, please review, and I'll try to get the next chapter up soon. ^^


	4. The Fight

**Gone Forever**

**Disclaimer: **Don't own him...

**Author's Note: **So I'm trying to find a beta reader (I've never had one before), so if you guys know of anyone who would be willing to help me out, please tell me! Anyway, enjoy the chapter, I'll try to get the next one up soon.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 4<strong>

"I don't think that's a good idea, Kenjiro." Naruto heard a strict female voice coming from the kitchen as he made his way down the stairs, Kitsune keeping pace next to him. He heard a few other words being said by someone else, probably arguing but he wasn't really able to focus on who was saying it or what was being said as his head swam and he had to keep one hand on the wall for support, otherwise he might loose his balance and stumble down to the first floor.

He groaned. He knew for sure that he had definitely not been a morning person before he had lost his memory. He knew he was feeling better from all that rest, but he still felt foggy and unable to focus.

"He just woke up from a coma!" someone was nearly shouting, making Naruto's head ache. "It is not good to just throw him into a fight, who knows what that could do to his exhausted body. It's not going to happen."

"But Reeeiiinaaaa!" Naruto was actually able to recognize Kenjiro's voice as the man drawled out his wife's name. "He even agreed to it."

Who agree to what? Naruto wondered as he reached the bottom of the stairs. He looked into the kitchen. The whole family was already there, Amane and Reina both working at the counter while Kenjiro faced them, his stance saying he was desperate for her to agree. Only Akio was facing him, but the boy didn't say anything, only gave him a small smile. Naruto grinned back, walking further into the room.

"I don't care if he agreed to it!" Reina said sternly. "Besides, you probably pressured him into-" at that moment, the woman turned around and the words died in her mouth as she saw Naruto. "Oh, hi. Good morning! How was your sleep?"

At the mention of sleep, Naruto yawned as everyone turned around to see him. Kenjiro had a pout on his face, but everyone else was smiling at him so warm heartedly.

"It was really good," Naruto answered. "Thanks for letting me stay here. Uh.. may I ask what time it is?"

"Oh, it's eleven o'clock," Reina informed him quickly.

Naruto rubbed the back of his head, embarrassed. It looked like everyone else had been up for quite awhile already. Had they been waiting for him to eat? "I'm sorry, I slept for a really long time."

Reina pointed at him with the knife she held in her hand from chopping up vegetables. Naruto held up his hands in defense, taking a step back. "Don't you dare go apologizing for getting your rest," Reina warned. She turned the knife towards Kenjiro. "It's this idiot who should be apologizing, wanting to fight you on your first full day out of the hospital."

Now it was Kenjiro's turn to hold up his hands and back away. "Hey, hey, I'm sorry. No need to threaten." Reina made a movement as if to throw the knife and Kenjiro visibly flinched, ducking down and covering his head with a hand. When he realized she was not going to throw it, he straightened back up.

Amane was laughing. "Jeez, Dad, what kind of man are you? Afraid of a knife?" she teased.

Kenjiro's face twisted in anger, even if it wasn't quite serious. "Hey! I wasn't afraid. I was just..." he trailed off, not having a good enough reason.

Naruto grinned, he was really starting to love this family and how they acted together. Even Akio seemed happy here.

"Soo, about that fight," Naruto said, stretching an arm. He was feeling more awake now. "Are we still up for it?"

Kenjiro looked at Reina, as if he expected her to answer, which she did.

"Not you too!" Reina said exasperated. "You're not rested well enough. Give it another five days!"

"Five days?" Naruto couldn't help but gasp. That was a lot of time, there was no way he was going to be cooped up inside resting for that long. That was another thing he was sure about his past self, he didn't like lazing around too much. "But I'm feeling so much better! I'm a ninja, I heal fast." He wasn't sure if that was true, but he felt like it must be!

Reina put a hand to her forehead and thought it over. Finally, she sighed. "Fine, you two may have a light battle. But you must go easy on him Kenjiro. No weapons or jutsus. And if I step in and say stop, you have to stop. Right away."

Kenjiro looked a little disappointed and Naruto would be lying if he didn't feel that himself. He had no idea how good he was, but he was sure that Kenjiro didn't need to hold himself back.

"Alright, I can agree to that," Kenjiro gave in, giving Naruto a look to make sure he was okay with it too. Naruto nodded.

"Okay, but let's eat first. Breakfast is almost ready," Reina said. "Amane, why don't you go set the table?"

"Alright," Amane said, grabbing plates and chopsticks and scurrying to do just what her mother said. Naruto smiled as he watched her leave the kitchen to the dining room. He felt at ease, watching her.

Ten minutes later, the whole family plus Naruto was sitting at the table in the dining room. Since there was only four sides, Naruto was crammed next to Amane, but he didn't mind, her arm kept brushing against his as she reached for stuff on the table, and every once in while, she would turn and give him a huge smile.

The table was loaded with different types of food, from plates with meat to rice balls and various vegetables. Naruto was amazed, and he hoped they hadn't done all this for him.

"Since you missed breakfast," Reina said as she put meat onto her plate. "We decided to give you a full meal for lunch when you got up. Amane and I worked hard, so you had better enjoy this."

"R-really?" Naruto asked, blushing slightly. "It-it looks great. Thanks."

Naruto watched, confused, as Amane set a small plate filled with meat down on the ground. Then he made a small 'o' with his mouth in realization when the fox went immediately to eat it up. Amane rubbed the fox's head and behind the ears. It made Naruto shiver because, for some reason, he felt himself being touched in the same place on his head. It must've had something to do with that weird connection he felt he had with the fox. It felt good though, that he couldn't deny.

When Amane stopped, Naruto couldn't help but wish she would continue, but he wasn't about to say that aloud. He blushed, how embarrassing.

Suddenly, Naruto realized he was the only not eating, which just seemed rude. So even though he wasn't really hungry, he began to quickly eat the food he had already put on his plate.

Reina began gossiping about her work. She was saying something about one of her co-workers who was about to become a mother. Although Naruto didn't know who she was speaking about, everyone else did. Amane was seemed to be in disbelief and everyone was chatting about it nonchalantly.

Eventually, Naruto stopped trying to follow along. Instead, he leaned back slightly and smiled comfortably as he watching the family converse. He looked off to the side, thinking about if he had a family like this. Maybe he used to communicate like this with them, talking so carelessly about their friends. He sighed. He wondered if there was anyone anywhere out there looking for him, worrying about where he had gone.

"Naruto!" Amane called, shaking his shoulders.

"Huh?" Naruto blinked, turning to face the girl. Everyone was cleaning up the table. He must have spaced out a lot longer than he had intended to. He rubbed the back of his head, blushing. "Sorry, I was just thinking."

Amane smiled, crinkling her eyes. "It's okay. Hey. I think its almost noon, are you still up for that fight?"

Naruto grabbed his own plate and stood up as he answered, "Yeah! I'm feeling much better than yesterday. I bet I can beat your dad."

"I'm sure you can," Amane said without hesitation.

"I heard that!" Kenjiro called from the kitchen. "I have no intention to loosing to that brat!"

Naruto chuckled and Amane full out bursted into laughter. "You talk big," she yelled to him. "But you got nothing to back it up."

Kenjiro was grumbling something when Naruto walked in and placed his plate on the counter. The old man turned to face him. "Let's go, right now." The man walked to him, grabbed his arm and practically dragged Naruto outside and then to the back of the house. Everyone else followed at their own pace.

Naruto had never seen the back of their house before, so he took a moment to look it over. There was a tall tree next to the back of the house, outlining it. He could see one window on the second floor and he thought that maybe it was to his room. There was a small patio, with two chairs facing away from the house. A brown fence ran to the edge of the yard, probably 15 feet away from the back of the house. Various flowers bloomed along the border of the yard, and a beautiful blooming cherry blossom tree was in the far left corner.

Naruto was smiling softly as he took it all in, and he briefly wondered how they could be fighting in such a wonderful place. It almost felt sacred here, and Naruto didn't want to disturb the peace. But it seemed like Kenjiro didn't mind at all.

The old man was standing in a stance a few yards away from Naruto, waiting for the okay to attack. Naruto fought the urge to roll his eyes, for the guy really was way too eager, just like a child.

He took up his own stance after quickly glancing at Amane who was standing at the edge of the porch, and Reina and her brother, who were both sitting down in the two chairs now with the fox laying down next to them. Amane smiled at him, gave him the thumbs up sign and mouthed the words 'goodluck.'

It sent Naruto's heart fluttering and he let a huge smile break his face, not being able to contain it in, as he turned to face Kenjiro.

Kenjiro charged at him, and right before the old man reached him, Naruto felt a chill down his back, as he suddenly grew nervous. He had no idea how to fight. He would probably only embarrass himself. He should just stop this now, before he proved how weak he really was.

Thinking of Amane once again, Naruto realized he needed to do this. He wanted to prove to her that he was strong.

And so, when Kenjiro made his first strike by punching straight towards his face, Naruto blocked it, swatting the man's wrist away. His heart was set on winning this.

They exchanged a series of blows, one after another. Naruto let his instincts lead him, and he was surprised at how fast his limbs seemed to move, without him even telling them too, because he still had no idea what he was doing. He was able to block every little attack given by Kenjiro, from his kicking legs to his swinging arms. Naruto was even able to land a few of his own hits.

It wasn't long until Kenjiro was starting to grow tired. Naruto noticed because he could see the sweat hanging from the others brow and the guy's attacks began to slow. Naruto felt a sudden twinge of pain in his chest as he wondered if he was going to hard. He didn't want to hurt Kenjiro after all. The punch he was currently throwing suddenly wavered and then the next thing he knew was Kenjiro was grabbing his arm, twisting it around at a painful degree forcing Naruto himself to turn around, and then pressed his arm into Naruto's neck softly, but still threateningly.

Suddenly overcome by exhaustion, Naruto dropped to his knees and grabbed onto the arm around his neck. He coughed, his throat dry as he pulled at the arm with all his strength, but it wasn't helping his case.

Kenjiro laughed and let go. Naruto panted, rubbing his neck even though it didn't hurt all the bad. He could suddenly feel all the sweat on his body, making his clothing cling to him. Naruto scrunched up his nose, feeling disgusting. What had gone wrong? He was winning that fight before!

"You let your guard down," Kenjiro took the liberty of informing Naruto. "Never do that. It opened you up to attack. I'm a ninja, I can handle being a little tired. You didn't need to go easy, and besides, you look pretty exhausted yourself."

Kenjiro walked around so he was in front of the younger boy. He offered his hand which Naruto took gratefully and he helped the boy up onto his shaky legs. Naruto took a second before he got his balance under control, then he let go of Kenjiro's hand.

"Still, you were pretty good. You could have possible beaten me if not for that last slip up," Kenjir congratulated him. "Of course, I've been out of practice for awhile."

"Pfft," Naruto rolled his eyes. "And I can't even remember ever being a ninja." He half walked and half stumbled over to Amane and the rest of the family.

Amane's eyes were shining as she grinned excitingly towards Naruto. "You were amazing! If you could remember everything, just think of how great a ninja you would be. Ah, I'm so jealous."

Naruto smiled back at her, and, however cheesy it was to say, felt like a flower was blossoming in his chest. He was easily able to ignore the words 'if you could remember everything' for the time being. But he knew deep inside himself that he couldn't live forever without the curiosity of finding out who he was.

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><p>It was the day after Naruto's funeral and Sakura would rather not dwell on how sad yesterday had been. Nearly the whole village had shown up to Naruto's memorial, crowding the cemetery till it almost burst. The people near the front of the crowd were closer friends of Naruto, including teammates and teachers. They had all been crying, even the guys who tried their best to hide it. Strangers, that had only heard of Naruto or passed him by in the streets were quietly sniffling as well.<p>

Tsunade had spoken a few words over Naruto's grave, her voice cracking as she did so. Sakura couldn't remember exactly what the Hokage said, but the over all feeling of it was that Naruto had been a great person. Other people had gone up as well, but Sakura had stayed where she stood, knowing that she wouldn't be able to get anything out of her mouth.

When it was over, the majority of the crowd walked solemnly out, heads bowed and not breaking the silence. A few stayed to linger, walking over to Naruto's grave and whispering words of farewell. Sakura still had stayed in her spot, head down to the ground, as she cried silently until the whole graveyard was empty save her. She didn't move until the sun was nearly setting and she figured she needed to head back home to sleep. She had left without a single glance back to Naruto's grave.

Sakura shook her head, clearing it of any depressing thoughts. Yesterday was over and done with, she had a new mission now. To go and see the one who was responsible for the death of Naruto. Sakura was going to make sure that Sasuke paid for what happened. She would make him suffer and cry by any means necessary. She didn't care if the guards wouldn't permit it.

As the girl walked through town her steps were filled with confidence and she was headstrong. She glared at everything in front of her, an evil aura hanging about her. The villages became wary and so were quickly scurrying out of the scary woman's way, not wanting to be caught in her path for fear of death.

Not soon enough, the prison came in sight. Sakura refused to run to it though, she wasn't going to give Sasuke that pleasure, but she did quicken her pace. She bounded up the steps as soon as she got to them and stopped next to the door where a guard was standing.

The guard looked her over. "What is your purpose here?" he asked, not being rude but simply doing what he was meant to.

"I'm Haruno Sakura," Sakura told him. "I wish to visit Uchiha Sasuke. It's an order from Tsunade-sama."

That last part was a lie, but Sakura knew it was a necessary one to get herself in to see Sasuke.

The guard eyed her suspiciously but Sakura held her ground. After a little while, the guard nodded briskly. "Alright. Wait here for a second."

The guard left her by the doors as he slipped inside the prison. When he returned, another guard was standing with him.

"Come with me," the second guard said, all business. "I will show you to the Uchiha."

Sakura nodded and followed the man into the dark prison. She didn't both looking around at the countless cells with criminals in them. She focused her eyes on the back the guards black coat. Their footsteps echoed against the concrete floor, ringing in her ears.

They reached a stairway and the guard grabbed a torch at the top of it before leading the way down it. Sakura could feel her blood chilling as she took the first step and gazed down below. She could barely see the end of the stairs, and beyond that seemed a black abyss with an occasional light flickering.

With each step, she began to grow more nervous, her skin starting to tingle. It wasn't a bad nervousness though, it was more like she was excited. Sasuke was going to regret all that he had done.

The hallway at the end of stairs was barely lit by the candles, but the torch the guard carried gave it all an orange glow. Sakura was led past many empty cells for a long time before the guard finally stopped and swung is torch towards a certain one.

"Here we are, Uchiha Sasuke's cell," the guard announced. "Now, what is it-" that's when he realized something was amiss. The cell bars had a huge hole in it and no matter how you looked at it, the cell was empty of any human.

Sakura gritted her teeth and felt her hands began to shake as she balled them up into fists. How could have happened? Wasn't someone supposed to be watching him!

Her breaths started to come out raggedly and the girl turned on her heel and stormed out of the building. Damn him. Damn that stupid fucking Sasuke. If he thought he could hide, he was fucking wrong. Sakura was going to find him, and she'd rip that pretty face of his off his head.

* * *

><p>Sasuke was getting close to the edge of the Fire Country's land. He had traveled all through the night and his body was just know showing the effects of his exhaustion. He knew he needed rest, or else he would collapse soon.<p>

The Uchiha had stopped running, and he walked at a slow pace into a small town. He glanced behind him, as if he could see the Konoha still there in the distance. He wondered if anyone had noticed him gone yet. They probably had, and the anbu were probably already on his tail.

He let out a small sigh as he searched for a place to sleep, weaving his way through the villagers who looked at him weirdly.

At least once he was rested, he would be able to run faster and avoid the anbu better. He doubted they would make it to this village by the time he woke up, but they would sure as hell be a lot closer to him. This is what he got for not eating and sleeping properly in his prison cell.

When Sasuke found a small hotel, he walked up to the doors and put his hand on the handle when he finally realized something very important. He had no money. No supplies including food. Damnit, there was no way to pay for a room.

Sasuke let his hand drop back to his side, and he stared up to the sky, to the moon sailing through the stars. It was way below him to sleep in the alley way, or worse, to use his looks to help him beg for a warm bed and some good food. He didn't even know how to beg.

The Uchiha growled and ran a hand through his hair. He had to do this for Naruto. If he didn't... there was no telling what would happen. All Sasuke had to do was walk into the place and create a sob story about wanting to see his Uncle or something who was sick but he lived so far away and Sasuke had been traveling for a few days already and he was out of money by now. It might explain the reason why he smelt so horrible.

Maybe it would work better if he used a henge to change himself into a small and pitiful boy. The idea wasn't too hard, and Sasuke knew he could pull it off.

As he prepared himself for the jutsu, someone placed a hand on his shoulder, making Sasuke mentally jump. Of course, he showed no outer signs of any surprise. He simply just turned to glare at the girl with a hand on his shoulder.

"Oi!" the girl said loudly. Her face clearly said she was annoyed as she frowned and her eyebrow twitched. "I was trying to get your attention."

Sasuke didn't give her the pleasure of answering back, he only continued to stare, wishing she would just go away. As long as Sasuke didn't talk, she was sure to grow bored and walk away. Still, as the girl was still there, Sasuke took the time to look her over.

She was maybe a year younger than him, with smooth looking white skin and brown hair tied back in a pony tail. Her eyes were a honey color. Her body looked smaller than average and she seemed weak. She was wearing a semi-tight blue t-shirt, jean shorts that went to her knees and sandals.

Looking back at her face, she seemed even more pissed off than before.

"How long are you going to stare!" she accused him, finally taking her hand off his shoulder. As Sasuke turned to walk away, she caught his wrist and forced him to stay. Her grip was a lot stronger than she looked capable of.

"Listen, I don't know what the acceptable greeting is where ever you come from," the girl growled. "But here, you could at least say hi. I was going to be nice, because I noticed you standing outside this hotel, and ask if you needed a place to stay. But you obviously don't want my help, so you can forget about it."

Sasuke lifted an eyebrow, the only sign of his shock at how kind this rude girl was trying to be. He had probably already ruined his chances of the girl still wanting to help him but swallowing his pride, he said, "Yes, I need a place to stay. I would really appreciate it if you could give me one."

The girl smiled, obviously pleased, and released Sasuke's wrists. "Now that you've asked, yes, I have place where you can stay. And shower as well, because you really stink."

Sasuke was a having a hard time with this as he bowed his head. "I don't have any money with me."

"That's alright. Because you look so worn out, I'll let you stay at my house for free. And I suppose you need some food too. This is just for this once though," the girl said. "If you're planning to stay a long time, I'm afraid you'll have to go mooch on someone else."

Sasuke shook his head. "No, I only need a place to sleep for awhile. Then I'll be on my way again."

"Okay, great!" she smiled warmly. "Could I get your name?"

"Uch-" Sasuke stopped himself, biting down on his tongue. He was probably a well known criminal, he couldn't very well be spewing his name out to everyone.

The girl seemed to understand. "That's okay, if you can't tell me. My name's Keiko. It's nice to meet you."

Sasuke let out a small smile. "You too."

And so, Keiko led Sasuke to her house. The place was a small apartment and the insides were very clean. Sasuke had to wonder if she lived alone without her parents, but he didn't voice his questions. She showed him to the bathroom and said while he was showering, she would make them up so some food.

Sasuke nodded and shut the bathroom door. He quickly stripped out of his disgusting, sweaty clothes and hopped under the flow of warm water. He gave some thought about where he should start his search for Naruto and figured that he may as well start where they had had their fight. Hopefully, Naruto would still be there, if not close by.

**End of Chapter 4**

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><p><strong>Notes: <strong>Bad Keiko, never take random strangers into you house, what if he killed you? Anyway, I was kind of just writing that last scene and I was thinking, 'hmmm, maybe Keiko could be slight love interest for Sasuke?' I have no idea, but maybe you could guys could give me your thoughts? Anyway, please review!


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